Newswise — Bestselling author John Green’s advice to Butler University’s Class of 2013 is gathering online buzz. Huffington Post and other outlets have linked to text of Green’s remarks, and thousand have viewed Butler’s video of Green, captured during the University’s May 11 Commencement in Hinkle Fieldhouse. Video can be found at www.butler.edu/johngreen.
Green told the 814 graduates that they were starting on a hero’s journey—not from weakness to strength, as the story is often told, but from strength to weakness.
“You will go from being the best-informed, most engaged students at one of the finest universities around to being, if you are lucky, the person who brings coffee to people,” he said.
And, that’s OK, Green said, because “for the rest of your life, if you are able to remember your hero’s journey from college grad to underling, you will be less of a jerk. You will empathize. You will be a mentor, and a generous one.”
Green and veteran Indianapolis educator Martha Mitchell received honorary degrees during the ceremony.
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